An IV stand comprises an upright post having at its top a traverse from which supply bags or bottles of IV liquid --normally blood or saline solution--are suspended. A thin tube extends from these supplies to a needle implanted in the wrist or hand of the patient who typically is recumbent in a bed adjacent the stand. Flow may be by gravity through the tube, or a peristaltic-type IV pump may be provided for accurately controlling and metering flow.
A problem with such devices is that the tube often trails from the patient over the bed and thence up to the supply. This tube, even though solidly anchored to the patient's wrist by tape, represents a substantial incumbrance and greatly limits movement of the patient. This problem is so acute that patients often sleep less well than they should out of worry that they will roll over and entangle themselves in the IV tube.